some say the date was chosen in september instead of may due to may day's connection to socialism and riots. thanks for being part of my show this week. i'll see you next week. hello, everyone. i'm fredricka whitfield. here's the top sorries thtories we're following at this hour. the clippers had a huge win last night but now the front office is facing big changes. and protesters in ukraine storm a police station today breaking windows and doors. another intense clash just days after dozens of deaths. we're live at the scene. and the insults and jokes were flying in washington. coming up, the funniest moments and who got the worst of it at the white house correspondents'

dinner. first, this breaking story we're following for you. a circus accident in providence, rhode island, that may have resulted in serious injuries. it happened when performers fell from the rafters, apparently, during an aerial stuns. nick valencia is here. this was a ringling brother's performance? >> yes. it involved performers hanging about 30 feet from the ground. they are looking into whether a cable dropped the acrobats. one person on the ground also suffered injuries and was taken to the hospital. the wringling brothers just got into town on friday and were to continue performing through monday. this performance was canceled

and the show was canceled. no word yet on the have a variety of the injuries. nine people, including eight ak crow bats were injured. >> this is just started. it was a matter of seconds before a full house, right, all of the spectators saw it as it happened? >> that's right. we saw the video of this accident and it was very, very dramatic, fred. as you mentioned, the performance was just under way and all of a sudden you just see these performers drop to the ground. no support underneath them. they fell immediately to the ground, about 20 or 30 feet, according to witnesses. >> no mat or netting? >> as far as i can tell, no. >> we're going to talk to steven payne, the vice president of the corporate communications for feld entertainment, the parent company for barnum & bailey. >> well, the information that we have now, the apparatus that the

aerialists performed from fell to the show. eight were transferred to local hospital ts. we don't have any information as to why the apparatus fell or the injury of the performers. as was previously mentioned, the rest of the show was canceled and we're making a determination about the remainder of the shows for the providence engagement. >> now, steven, is this an act that had been performed many times over? i realize that this act, this show in providence just started on friday. but is this something that had happened and this apparatus had been used many times over? >> correct. this apparatus had been used for multiple performances each week since this show launched back in february. each and every time that we come to a new venue, all of the equipment that is used by this performer -- this group of performers as well as other

performers is careful inspected. our company has a safety department that spent countless hours making sure that all of our equipment is indeed safe and effective for continued use. again, we don't have any complete information as to what occurred this morning. we are conducting a full investigation in conjunction with local authorities to make a determine as to what happened. >> steve, have you seen a videotape of what happened? >> i have not seen the videotape of this incident, no, i have not. >> was it described to you, then? >> i'm very familiar with the act in question. i've seen the act multiple, multiple times. >> okay. what's the description that you received? >> our thoughts and prayers are with those that are injured. our main concern is with them at this point. >> absolutely. what has been described to you about what happened?

what phase of this act did the accident happen? >> as far as i can tell from the people who were there is that all eight of the performers were on the apparatus at the time it fell. i do not have any information as to exactly how high it was at the time of incident. but clearly it was -- something went very wrong with this apparatus which has been used 12 to 14 times a week for months. so we're very concerned about what type of equipment failure took place, hence our investigation this afternoon. >> okay. because the incident seemed to happen, this accident or these performers fell to the ground happened very shortly after a curtain that is around this human chandelier, not long -- a matter of seconds after that curtain was removed, then there was some movement that the

acrobats seemed to do all in a sing crow nized manner and then suddenly plunged to the ground. is that what has been described to you? >> that is what i have been told. again, when the curtain was removed, they all perform in a synchronized matter. i do not know whether the curtain is considered to be a contributing factor or not. it's too early to speculate what will be the cause of the accident. we'll have to wait for the investigation to continue. >> as nick valencia was explaining, the circus is scheduled to perform until monday. obviously canceled for today. will tomorrow's performance be canceled? will performances be canceled indefinitely even as you plan to go to other touring cities? >> well, again, it's too early for me to make any determination

as to the status of any future performances in providence at the dunkin' donuts center. a lot hinges on the determination that is made about the safety and the equipment and everything that goes into the greatest show on earth. as i said at the beginning. the safety of our performers is the number one priority. so we as a company are going to do everything possible to make sure that all future performances are absolutely safe for our performers and our guest. >> and this is a performance that did not involve animals. this was strictly a human chandelier, correct? >> correct. >> and can you give me any sense as to what kind of injuries these performers -- you said eight performers may have sustained? >> i have no information on the injuries that they sustained or their current medical condition. >> okay. you don't know what kind of medical condition they are receiving right now? >> i do not know. i know that all nine performers were transported to local hospitals. >> nine performers.

of course, we wish them all the best. it was a frightening and harrowing moment for all of the spectators to witness as it happened. stephen payne, thank you so much. of course, we're wishing the best for those nine performers that mr. payne was describing for us at the wringling brothers all performing a human chandelier, many of whom are now speaking medical attention. still unclear what kind of injuries they sustained. they may have been suspended, what, 20, 30 feet in the air and suddenly plunged to the ground. >> and for there not to be a safety net in case something like this happened, 12 to 14 times that this apparatus was used per week since january, they are going to be looking into what potentially happened to this apparatus, why it collapsed causing this very dramatic scene for all of those people in the crowd and nine people taken to the hospital.

>> no net, no crash pad speaks to the confidence that they had about the safety of that performance. still unclear what happened. thanks, nick. as you get more information, bring it to us. appreciate that. the other big story that we're following for you out of los angeles, the fans are still celebrating after the clippers' big win in game seven of the playoffs last night. they beat the golden state warriors, 126-121, and advanced to the playoffs. donald sterling's estranged wife is weighing in on all of this. deborah feyerick is covering this story for us from new york. this story continues to experience all kinds of changes on a daily basis. what now? >> well, it absolutely does. shelly sterling made it very clear that she was not going away quietly. she released a statement saying that she is the co-owner, that

since 1981 when they bought it, she's only had the best interest of the team at heart and she's been in welcome his active involvement in the search for a person of the utmost character, proven excellence and a commitment to promoting equality and inclusiveness. as a co-owner, i am fully committed to taking the necessary steps to make the clippers the best team in the nba. that has been my aspiration ever since 1981. that means that she's having conversation with the nba commissioner, she supports his decision and she agrees that they should move ahead to find the best ceo. she make as personal dig at her husband. she wants to find a man with the utmost character and a person who has a commitment to providing equality and

inclusiveness. not her husband. this woman is incredibly brazen. she filed two lawsuits against donald sterling's alleged mistress and she wants property back. she wants gifts back that sterling gave to the mistress because she says, hey, this was our property. i never gave him permission to use our money to buy her gifts. so therefore, she's in possession of those gifts basically wrongly because i never said okay. it's very clear shelly sterling is in control of the situation right now and by establishing herself as a co-owner, this is now a game changer depending on what the nba does, whether they decide that sterling should be selling the team. >> is there acknowledgement from the commissioner that she's a co-owner? >> she's a co-owner because it's community property. in california, it's all community property. therefore, whether it says it on paper or not, as his wife and

having purchased this team more than 30 years ago, they are not only having to deal with donald sterling as to whether they should kick him out but now essentially, they have to see if they can kick her out as well. very shrewd move on her park but shelly sterling may be sitting courtside for a long time to come. >> we'll talk about what it takes to buy a team like that and the continued legal road ahead especially now that miss shelly has reminded everyone that she, too, is a co-owner. more straight ahead in the next few hours. in the meantime, we're looking overseas where cheers rang out. what led up to the release right there in ukraine and the celebration there, next.

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the site of ukraine's deadliest crashes in months is seeing more violence today. 40 people were killed after a fire in odessa. today, hundreds of pro-russian activists demanded that they be released. police demanded that they be let go and were greeted with cheers and hugs. the acting prime minister met with leaders and offered his condolences for those who died this week and says ukraine has to unite. owe des sa is hundreds of miles closer to the border with russia

and it had been fairly calm. phil black is live. tell me what happened today. >> reporter: we've seen a lot of anger on the streets since the fire and clashes on friday claimed so many lives. a big crowd gathered outside the police station. most were happy to stand in the rain and just scream, demanding the freedom of the 60-plus people that were held inside. pro-russian activists who were arrested. but some would attack a building, breaking window security cameras trying to get through doors. in the end, they ended up at the courtyard of the police station. it was around that time that the police officer inside tried to make a deal. he said he would let all of the pro-russian activists that were currently being held let go if everyone went home peacefully. so those activists started to be released and emerged from the station as heroes. it was an incredibly emotional

scene. very large cheers, crying, hugs, smiles, as people were reunited with their loves ones and these people were really welcomed back to the community as heroes, fredricka. >> phil black, thank you so much, in odessa. is there any hope for intervention given this intensifying violence. candy crowley spoke on "the state of the union" this morning. russia's putin says he's not the aggressor in all of this. the ambassador believes putin was instrumental in yesterday's release of the u.n. observers held hostage, right? >> right. and there was plenty of evidence for that. a russian enjoy went across the border to talk to those who were

holding those and they were released. this is sort of the one bright spot where it has looked increasingly like a civil war. >> russia has accomplished that and russia has played a role in doing so and we hope that that's the approach that they will take in the days ahead. >> so the situation is bad but this ambassador, he doesn't want to quite label it a civil war. why not? >> no, he doesn't. if you look at those pictures and if you understand the two sides and what's going on in so many cities across eastern ukraine, it certainly does look like a civil war. but he's not willing to go that far right now. >> i don't see that yet, candy. what i see is a society that is facing extraordinary threats of division. but where the dominance

continues in every public opinion survey from every ukrainian i talk to is how can we get our country to pull together again? >> fred, the problem here is that the west and the u.s. are pushing so hard toward those may 25th elections where they hope that the current existing ukraine government will be supported by a vote of the ukrainian people. so to call it a civil war now only further casts some doubt as to whether that vote can be taken and what the u.s. wants, what the west wants is to tamp this violence down so that both can be taken and the ukrainian government that was taken in a c coup and they can further take action as to what is happening in eastern ukraine. to call it a civil war now, they believe, would undermine those actions. >> a big story we'll watch.

candy crowley in washington, thank you. >> thanks, fred. buying the clippers. a lot of celebrities want to do it but, guess what, it takes more than just money. the business of buying into the nba, next. yeah, i'm married. does it matter? you'd do that for me? really? yeah, i'd like that. who are you talking to? uh, it's jake from state farm. sounds like a really good deal. jake from state farm at three in the morning. who is this? it's jake from state farm. what are you wearing, jake from state farm? [ jake ] uh... khakis. she sounds hideous. well she's a guy, so... [ male announcer ] another reason more people stay with state farm. get to a better state. ♪

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sfloo pretty significant news. shelly sterling is claiming that she's co-owner of the clippers. the clippers beat the golden state warriors, by the way, in game seven not being distracted by all of this. last night they advanced to the western conference semifinals. players are also hearing good news about their leadership. the nba is hiring a new team ceo in light of the controversy surrounding their owner donald sterling and the racist remarks caught on tape. so, sterling's wife shelly releasing this statement, i welcome nba commissioner active involvement in the search for a person of the utmost character,

prov prov prov prov proven excellence and as a co-owner i am fully committed to taking the necessary steps to make the clippers the best team in the nba. that has been my aspiration ever since 1981. that is coming from the wife, shelly sterling. the nba is expected to vote about whether forcing donald sterling to sell the team and if they do, we could see big names taking over. david ellison, david geffen and oprah winfrey may be making a bid. floyd mayweather, chris hansen and os ska oscar de la hoya is also a candidate.

good to seat both of you. ira, let's talk about this. a potential game-changer here now that shelly sterling is saying, wait a minute, i am co-owner here. you've got to take me into krrgs consideration. >> it depends on if she means co-owner and theoretically entitled to half of the team, i don't think it matters. sterling is the person that they will be forcing out. if she has independently a large share in the team, then sort of liquidating her ownership might be trickier. but it sort of remains to be seen. we don't know exactly who owns what slices of the team. my understanding is that donald sterling owns the team. >> deborah, this statement that she makes, even to the commissioner saying, i actually agree with you, nba commissioner

silver, that there needs to be better leadership and this is something that i want to make happen. so essentially she's saying, you can give me a new ceo and you can do and bring in what other reinforcements you need but i'm still going to be part of this team. >> there's no question that she's basically telling the nba commissioner, we're going to take care of this together. we're going to get rid of him because he's made terrible remarks, allegedly, but me, i'm going to work this through with you. it's a very interesting statement released by her daughters. this was done before last night's game after the nba commissioner said that there was a search for a new ceo. it's very shrewd. this a woman that sued sterling's mistress, saying that she wanted back all of the gifts that her husband gave to the young woman. the reason given is that it's community property. if she's asking for $250,000

worth of gifts back from the alleged mistress, you better believe she's going to be asking for her share of this team, if not her share, the team entirely. it's a very interesting and very shrewd play on her behalf. >> it's very interesting. let's talk about the buying part, if it comes to that. so you decided to buy the los angeles clippers. we know that buying the clippers would not only be expensive but a real headache, in your view. why? >> because you're competing against the richest of the rich that he means that, you know, it doesn't just depend on the financials. you're depending sort of on the whims of very wealthy people who can raise the price dramatically and you don't know what other people think about what it would mean to them. the other issue is that you have to pass the nba's vetting process, which is very strict and will be especially strict in this instance because of what happened with sterling. >> a repeated mistake.

>> exactly. >> so say you've got the money and we're looking at the potential contenders. say they have the money and apparently the team could, you know, be up for grabs for close to a billion dollars and it's not so simple just having deep pockets, though. you say it really could take years before a new buyer would ever really take possession? >> yeah. it depends on whether donald sterling tries to block the league's action. assuming they vote to strip him off of his ownership, they would say that's illegal. and while sorting it out, if it's a federal anti-trust case, it could take years and it's not clear that the nba would accept bids that the point because it's not clear who owns the title. so they may wait. >> yeah. and so deborah, when you think and re-evaluate this statement coming from shelly sterling, it really doesn't seem to entertain

the idea of splitting the assets of her husband with the co-owner. it seems that she's saying she's in it for the long haul. it sounds as though she will not volunteerly gave up this team as a co-owner. it seems like she would have that leverage. >> that's absolutely correct. by releasing this statement, she's showing everyone, everybody who is watching this story that she is in complete agreement with the nba commissioner, that she wants what is best for this time, as does he, that she's committed to the excellence. regardless of what her husband has said or done, she's saying, look, i'm a co-owner here. how did they work that out? and ira would know better than i. is this something that, for example, is she entitled to keeping half of the team and

they have to sell donald sterling's share off as his wife, albeit estranged? >> i think if she wants to claim through community property, if she wants to claim her half of the time as half an asset that belongs to her husband, they could evaluate that asset and say it's worth this much. otherwise what would happen, if the nba is able to strip sterling of his ownership, she would be able to attach half of the proceeds of the sale but would have no more say in the sale than donald sterling. >> so if normal circumstances in an nba team transaction may take years, now we're really talking about a lot of years, potentially. ira boudway, deborah feyerick, thank you. >> thank you. vice president joe biden may not have actually been at the correspondents' dinner. you know, that was the big date

that everybody was talking about last night. but he did make a splash. and speaking of dates, look at who his date was.

i'm going to be so star struck. >> i'm here because i came last year and i had such a good time. >> why are you making her work? she should be in there with the president. >> do you have your gig on? >> i still have my gig on. >> what's up, chuck in. >> thank you. nice to see you. glad to be here. >> all right. that was just a little peak into last night at the white house correspondents' dinner. vice president biden wasn't there but he did kind of weigh

in on julia louise dreyfess in this clip. >> hello? >> selena, what are you doing? >> i thought you were the president. are you going to this correspondents' dinner tonight? >> no i'm not going. it's a punch of politicians trying to explain politics to hollywood. it's not worth it. >> exactly. who wants to see david gregory crying in the corner all night. hey, do you want to come and pick me up? yellow? seriously? yellow? >> get in this car.

>> oh, it's locked. >> just check for me. >> no. >> i've got to remember that. oh, yeah. okay. >> shh. >> whoa. don't touch the desk. don't touch the desk. >> okay. >> come on, let's get out of here and get something to eat. >> no. >> this is good. my granddaughters like the sprinkles. >> it's the sweetest thing that you can get in the executive branch. hey, guys. what are you doing? >> nothing. >> what's in your mouth? carrots? >> hey, don't touch. >> haven't you guys listened to anything that i've said about healthy eating? hand it over. hand it over. you guys, come on, let's move.

>> busted. >> you can say that again. >> oh, she looks good. i just forgot my purse, so -- >> i'm sure there are raisins in here. it's a fruit. plus, it's more than you give you at that correspondents' dinner, let me tell you. plus, i work out every day. >> yeah, sure you do. i do, too. >> you want to arm wrestle. >> i don't really work out. >> yeah, i didn't think so. >> so where are we headed next? >> we can write any headline we want? >> knock yourself out. go to it. >> the headline i'd like to write is selena meyers sworn in as president, but only good time. yes, we can all look directly into the camera, kevin. the point is, you're not

supposed to. ♪ oh. hey, selena, hey, joe. >> what ro you doing here? >> getting my tattoo done. >> do you know what the difference is between the koch brothers and a tattoo? they are both painful but you can do it. >> all right. let's do it. ♪ >> bring it on. >> oh, yeah.

bring it on. >> hey, girl. >> hey, jay dog, are you going to this dinner thing tonight? >> hey i'm not going. important things going on here in the capital. >> all right. thanks. you know what, joe, i'm going to need to go to the dinner. you see, the thing is, i'm not really the vp but you are. i'm an actress from hollywood. >> i know. >> so can you give me a ride? >> hey, the secret service doesn't let me drive off the property. >> that makes no sense. >> you can get a cab. >> yeah. i've got my dress and this hair. thanks a million, joe. >> good luck.

>> oh, my gosh. so they had a little fun there. again, all of that from the white house correspondents' association. they put together that film and it ran last night at the dinner. the real vice president biden was not at the dinner but he was by virtue of that. but the start of the hbo show was at the dinner. talking about it today, political commentator mark hill. that was fun stuff. >> that was extremely fun. i thought that whole video was fun. >> no one doubted that joe biden had a sense of humor but he puts them up there now. >> yeah, he's got some comedic chops, too. >> i know. very impressive. so talk to me about what you think is significant about this

dinner. it is all in fun. but it does give folks, i guess, a chance to see these politicos in a different way. >> yeah. i love the fact that it's really hash tagging around the world as nerd problem. all of us in journalism get to hang out with the celebs and the celebs get to show their nerdy side. it was a lot of fun and it's getting more advertising than 20 years ago but it's still a lot of fun. >> and the president was there front and center. he made his own funny jokes about his vice president. let's sis sen. >> it is strange to change that i just have 2 1/2 years left in this office. everywhere i look, there are reminders that i only hold this job temporarily.

but it's a long time between now and 2016 and anything can happen you may have heard the other day hillary had to dodge a flying shoe at a press conference. >> all right. so everybody has a good sense of humor about this. what about the president and the timing? he's always a hit at these dinners, as you know. >> he is the best. bush is very good. i think obama may be the best at this. he has the right timing and temperament and self-deprecating humor and enough aimed at the other side. it's perfect. >> and the comedian of the night was joel mchale. let's listen to some of the jokes he said. he was kind of racy at times. >> good evening, mr. president. yet another inner city minority

relying on the federal government to feed and house your family. >> oh, my goodness. okay. so people kind of nervously laughed at moments like that. >> you know, it was weird because that was one of the better jokes. you know, he sometimes went so far it wasn't even fun. i love irreverent humor but some of the jokes just didn't hit and you heard the growans in the crowd. it was not as bad as jay leno but almost one of the worst that i've seen in ten years. >> marc lamont hill, thank you. every time you listen to it, you hear one little nuance or thing and it's fun to watch the expression in the audience, those who nervously laugh or those who are stone-faced who said i'm not going to laugh here. >> people tried.

>> thank you, marc, appreciate it. all right. straight ahead, no laughing matter at all. nigeria's president now addressing his nation more than two weeks after nearly 300 school girls were kidnapped. what does he have to say now? a live report coming up. narrator: these are the tennis shoes skater kid: whoa narrator: that got torture tested by teenagers and cried out for help. from the surprised designers. who came to the rescue with a brilliant fix male designer: i love it narrator: which created thousands of new customers for the tennis shoes that got torture tested by teenagers. the internet of everything is changing manufacturing. is your network ready?

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girls is building tension. let's go to isha sesay. what is being said, if anything? >> reporter: hi there, fredricka. this is the first time that the president has addressed the nation on this matter which took place some almost three weeks ago the president saying a short time ago that basically the nigerian military and security forces are doing everything they can to locate these girls but making the point that they are not going to be able to identify

their location and that they will locate these girls, he says, they will return them to their homes. this is the first time that we got some operational detail of the effort to find these girls. they are using helicopter and aircraft to scan the area. also pointing to the fact that he's formed a fact finding mission to go to this area and i think what is interesting is that the president seemed to be inferring in these remarks that a lock of progress has been made in an effort to find them because the parents are not cooperating with security forces. they are not giving up information about the girls' identity, which is going to strike some as somewhat odd but that's what the president said, the families need to cooperate

more. there are still many more questions to be answered. how is it possible that 276 girls could be taken from their beds in the dead of night in a place that is supposed to be under a state of emergency. fr fredricka? >> place that is supposed to be safe for those girls and why the president is saying that he's confident that they will find the girls but also saying, we have no idea where they are. >> reporter: absolutely. no doubt about that. what is that confidence based on? he did say that they were engaging in local countries bordering nigeria to see whether these girls have been taken into those areas, saying that if they are in other countries that they will be brought back. but fred, they don't know where they are. >> oh, my gosh. it's so unsettling and so terrifying. isha sesay from lago, nigeria. we'll be right back with more

after this. to prepare our kids to compete main today's economy?way woman: a well-rounded education that focuses on science, math, and career training for students who don't choose college. man: and that's exactly what superintendent of public education tom torlakson has been working on. woman: because every student needs the real world skills for the jobs of tomorrow. man: torlakson's career readiness initiative is helping schools expand job and technical training across the state because it makes a difference. woman: so tell tom torlakson to keep fighting for the career and technical training our students need. what is this place? where are we? this is where we bring together reliably fast internet and the best in entertainment. we call it the x1 entertainment operating system. it looks like the future! we must have encountered a temporal vortex. further analytics are necessary.

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coming up, a horrific accident at a circus. that story at the top of the hour. i have it say, i feel more confident on the court than in my life. >> venus has not always been optimistic about her future. three years ago she told the world that she was suffering from a fatigue-suffering disease. >> i just see it as a challenge. in my life, i've never been defeated by anything that i've lost. i've had to learn but i've never had to lay down the towel.

>> do you ever have days where you feel like you can't get out of bed? >> yes, i do. but that makes me anxious. so once you get that far down, once you get back up, you realize that you have really nothing to lose.